The Do's and Don'ts of Storing Wine
There are so many different types of rules to follow when storing your wine and it can become confusing trying to remember them all. Different types of wine need different treatments to help preserve them for longer. For example, red wine needs to be stored at a cooler temperature compared to white wine.
Many factors contribute to the quality and ageing process of your wine. This is why it is important to know how to store your wine correctly to maintain the quality of your wine. Throughout this blog, we will be exploring the different ways to store your wine correctly as well as what you should avoid when storing it.
The Do’s of Storing Wine
In order to store your wine correctly, there are a few things you need to consider. Read on for a step-by-step guide on how to store your wine properly and what you need to avoid.
Store Your Wine Bottles on Their Side
When storing your wine there is a number of things you need to consider. Firstly, you need to store your wine on its side. This is because placing your wine bottles on their side allows the wine to stay in contact with the cork, therefore, keeping the cork moist.
If the cork dries out then it will shrink therefore allowing oxygen to enter your wine. Oxygen has a negative effect on wine causing it to develop dull flavours and little to no aromas.
Invest in a Wine Cooler
When a temperature fluctuates it can damage the quality of the wine as well as the integrity of the cork. It is important to keep your wine at a constant temperature with very few fluctuations as possible.
A wine cooler is an excellent way to ensure that there are no temperature fluctuations when storing your wine. This is because wine fridges offer dual and single temperature control features to allow your wine fridge to stay at a constant temperature, therefore, preserving your wine for longer.
Wine cooler specialists Elite Wine offers a variety of wine coolers that come in different sizes. From freestanding wine coolers to integrated and built-in wine coolers they have it all. These wine coolers come with a range of features such as:
- UV-protective glass
- LED lights
- Vibration-free storing
- Ventilation system
- Humidity control
Pay Attention to Humidity
The humidity level is an important factor when storing your wine. The ideal humidity level for storing wine is around 50-80%. When storing wine, humidity is one of the main factors that go a miss. However, humidity is just as important as maintaining the temperature of your wine.
Storing your wine in an area of high humidity leads to the risk of mould whereas storing your wine in an area with low humidity risks your wine's cork drying out. This is where a wine cooler comes in handy as they offer humidity control to prevent the humidity from getting too high or too low.
The Dont’s of Storing Wine
Now, we have discussed what we should do to store our wines correctly, but what should we avoid when storing our wine? Read on to find out!
Keep Your Wine Out of Direct Sunlight
The sun contains UV light that can be extremely harmful to your wine as it causes your wine to age quicker as well as compromising the quality. Direct sunlight can interfere with the integrity of the wine. Any heat from light sources can also shrink the wine's cork.
Not only does the sun affect the wine by causing chemical reactions, but it also causes an unpleasant taste due to the production of sulphur in the wine.
Avoid Storing Your Wine in the Kitchen Refrigerator
When storing your wine, you must store it in a suitable place. A fridge is not an ideal place to store your wine as it does not offer the correct humidity levels or vibration-free storage. The temperature of the average fridge is far too cold for your wine to be stored there long term.
Store Your Wine Away From Vibration
Vibration can disrupt the quality of your wine leading to chemical imbalances that can impact the quality, flavour and longevity of your wine. We recommend that you avoid storing your wine near any appliances that give off vibrations such as washing machines.
Elite Wine offers a range of vibration-free storing wine coolers to allow for the long preservation of your wine. Vibration can disturb the sediment present within the wine bottle leading to dull flavours and little to no aromas.
